


In Actions Not Taken and Things To Be Said

by alilyinhighgarden



Series: Memories Are Mapped Out By The Lines We'll Trace [1]
Category: World Wrestling Entertainment
Genre: But if you are against either pairing this is probably not the fic for you, Conversation About Feelings, Kayfabe Compliant, M/M, Seth is with Dean in this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-24
Updated: 2018-08-24
Packaged: 2019-07-01 22:12:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,137
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15783147
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alilyinhighgarden/pseuds/alilyinhighgarden
Summary: The surprising reunion of The Shield on Monday Night RAW should call for immediate celebration but before that Seth owes one person an explanation.Set immediately after the 8/20/18 episode of RAW.





	In Actions Not Taken and Things To Be Said

**Author's Note:**

> I very much ship Ambrollins but also found myself enjoying Finn and Seth's dynamic the last six months. This fic is I guess my way of tackling the idea that those two feelings do not have to be mutually exclusive.

The roar from the crowd vibrated in Seth’s ears as he stepped through the curtain feeling a kind of euphoria that had been rare as of late. Last night he regained the Intercontinental Title, tonight he got to be in Dean’s corner in his first match since December, and, as The Shield, let the roster and all those watching know that it was time for things on Monday Night RAW to change. After nine months of starts and stops, highs and lows, soaring victories and frustrating defeats, he and his boys were back together and on top. 

Backstage they were met with looks ranging from happy to shocked to absolutely pissed. He wished he had a camera to capture Corbin’s face. Steph might have put him in charge this evening but neither of them realized that, in fortuitous timing, The Shield was back to enforce justice. Something Seth felt would be needed with the “Constable” running things.

It was not until his eyes fell upon Finn sitting back against the wall opposite the curtain, eyes hard as he watched the three of them, that he felt the high he was riding temper. That look was one he had not received from Balor in quite some time.

“Good match man,” Roman said, extending out his hand, “Sorry Braun had to come and steal the spotlight.”

“Yeah, it was a good fight,” Finn said without much enthusiasm but shaking Roman’s hand nonetheless.

Considering everything that had transpired between himself and Balor over the last six months Seth knew that Finn deserved more than a quick nod. He had been in both he and Roman’s corner in more than one occasion and that earned him an explanation.

“I’ll catch up with you two.”

“Okay man,” Roman said, and moved past him to head toward his locker room.

Dean looked from Seth to Finn and gave a nod. Before he left he reached out, giving Seth’s hand a quick squeeze. “I’ll pack up your shit but, uh, don’t take too long, we still have some celebrating to do,” he said with a lopsided smirk that made Seth’s stomach do flips. He watched as Dean turned down the hall to catch up with Roman and could feel the smile on his lips as he watched them turn the corner. The same one that had been damn near impossible to wipe off since he had picked Dean up from the airport last Monday. For the first time in a long time things felt irrefutably  _ right _ .

Or almost right.

With a sigh he turned back to Finn, who was laser focused on him. It was hard to decipher his expression but Seth was sure that confusion and apprehension were among the emotions resting in his furrowed brow. And honestly, Seth could not blame him. They had become friends, had each other’s backs for months, enjoyed fighting both with and beside each other. There was no way this sudden turn of events could read well.  

“Hey man. I want you to know that we weren’t going to interfere with your match. If you’d pinned Roman you’d have been walking out with the belt.”

“You sure about that,” Finn asked, eyebrows raised.

Given the way the last ten minutes had gone Seth knew their intent being questioned was earned but he still has to tell himself not to let it sting. During the glory days of The Shield the trio were not known for magnanimous behavior but that was over four years ago and things had changed. Seth had changed. And he had spent the past year and a half trying to prove that to everyone. He was not interested in moving backward and thought he had made that point clear in not just words but actions.

“We wouldn’t do that to you.” He slipped off the familiar vest he had donned and tagged on, “ _ I _ wouldn’t do that to you.”

Finn nodded, “Well, thanks for that.”

Seth willed himself to meet Finn’s gaze to determine if he believed him because he  _ needed _ him to. He was someone who seemed to put implicit trust in Seth and that was not something he wanted to lose.

As soon as their eyes met he felt that  _ other _ emotion that had been building between them along with their friendship since their chase towards Wrestlemania had started. The undercurrent of something  _ more _ . It was there any time they were around each other, which had been quite a lot for a brief period of time. In a different time and different place he would have acted on it but they were  _ here _ and this was  _ now _ and the only acknowledgement of it were through cheeky smiles, playful exchanges, and liking Instagram photos maybe a bit  _ too _ quick.

“You guys back together?” Finn asked and Seth knew that he was not  _ just _ referring to The Shield. He also knew that it is a question Finn could certainly already guess the answer to.

His excitement at Dean’s return had been obvious to anyone watching and this evening he had even opted to wear his new t-shirt instead of one of his own down to the ring. A move Roman was going to tease him about mercilessly now that he was not preparing for a match. Earlier he had just offered a a smirk and a shake of his head once he and Dean had met up with him in his locker room to formulate their plan.  

“Yeah,” he confirmed, looking at the floor instead of Finn, “It was only fucked up timing and shitty circumstances that broke us apart in the first place.”

When Dean left last December, thanks to an injury Seth had unintentionally inflicted and made much worse by Samoa Joe, it had been a crushing blow. Seth felt alone and aimless for months. He had worked so hard to achieve forgiveness and deserve happiness only to see it slip away in the course of a couple hours. Sure Roman had been there for him after but he was understandably preoccupied with his own aspirations. Not to mention that the brotherhood he shared with the Big Dog was not the same as having Dean by his side whether they were in a ring or back in their hotel room. Without him nothing seemed to click until one evening during a match with Finn. Something seemed to shift and Seth found the edge he had lost somewhere along the way and he found the fuel he needed to push toward the next step in his career.  

Sliding down the wall Seth joined Finn on the floor, laying his vest down by him. “You know I should thank you.” In his periphery he could see Finn’s head snap in his direction. He slid off the gloves that served as part of his costume as a Hound of Justice and tossed them on top of the vest. “All the fights we’ve shared this year, they helped me find a part of myself I think-” He ran his fingers over his bottom lip, “I dunno- I think maybe I’d grown afraid of.”

He smirked over at him, “Who knows if I would be Intercontinental Champion right now, let alone reforming The Shield without them.”

The smile Finn gave him in return seemed genuine but did not make it to his eyes. “Nah, you guys always find your way back to one another. It was only a matter of time.”

Finn reached out and patted Seth’s knee. “And you as champ, well, that would have happened too.”

Seth covered Finn’s hand with his own, ignoring the flutter in his stomach the touch elicited. “ _ Maybe _ but I wouldn’t change getting to spend so much ring time with you,” he said, running his thumb along the side of Finn’s hand.   

“I’d make one change.”

Seth raised a brow, a silent question.

“I’da won that title,” Finn said, that familiar shit eating smirk lighting up his face.

“Fair enough,” he laughed and a warmth settled in his chest.

In a different time. In a different place.

Everything about Finn was easy. His personality, his presence, their chemistry both in and out of the ring. It had all come without struggle. Sure there was a little baggage, what with Finn’s injury, but even that he had seemed to effortlessly forgive. It was fun and light and something he could so easily give in to.

The problem was that Seth’s heart had been claimed long ago by a man who was anything but easy. Everything with Dean was a challenge. It was exciting and unpredictable and gratifying once things fell in to place but also at times exhausting. Several years ago Seth decided that challenges were not worth the sweat and had made the worst decision of his life. With that decision he lost so much, including himself. It took a lot of crawling and struggle to find his way back to being someone he liked. It took an even bigger effort to earn the forgiveness and regain the trust of the person from whom it mattered the most.

Their job was hard and nine months of barely getting to see Dean so soon after their reunion, both as a team in the ring and in ways more private, had been a strain. A former version of himself would have given into the gratification of Finn’s affection but he did not want to ever be that kind of man again. Dean deserved more than that, Finn deserved more than that, and so did the rebuilt Seth Rollins.  

No matter what feelings he had developed for Finn they were still was not comparable to what he had with the man who he considered his soul mate both in the ring and out. The latter half a sentiment he had yet to share with Dean.

They sat there in for what felt like a long time but was likely only a few minutes. Seth staring where their hands sat not entwined but still connected. The only sound was that of the crew hastily packing up and getting things ready to head to the next town.

“I’m sorry.”

“What are you apologizing for?”

Seth bit down on his lip and searched for the right words. “I feel like somewhere along the way I may have let things seem like they could become more when...” He did not want to finish that statement. It felt like rubbing salt in a cut.

“Yeah,” Finn said with a slow sigh. “Woulda been nice.”

“I never meant to-“ but he was not sure how to finish that sentence. It was not as if he had ever actually crossed a line and it was hard to form into words remorse for something that never happened, even if he felt it.

Again more silence and Seth wondered if Finn was playing what-could-have-beens in his mind. He could admit that he had during post-match celebrations they shared or long drives when he was left to his own thoughts. Even if the end every scenario he came up with felt so minute compared to the connection he shared with Dean.

“I’m no idiot Seth. I’ve seen you in the last week. I think the only time you’ve looked close to as happy is the week you won at Mania.”

“I just- I want to make sure you know that I wasn’t trying to- I like hanging out with you and fighting with you. Hell, even against you doesn’t suck once I’ve won.”

“I know…” Finn said, his voice sad but resigned, “I like that too.”

Once again he found himself searching for a way to convey what he was feeling but was interrupted by Finn.

“You go meet up with your boys,” he said, removing his hand from underneath Seth’s so he could stand up and slide his jacket on. “I-“ His face was somber, an expression Seth was unaccustomed to seeing as of late. “I’ll see you around Seth.”

Before Seth can say anything back Finn was walking down the fluorescent illuminated hallway. No smartass smiles or knowing looks. Just a simple parting that he know means goodbye. Or as much of a goodbye as one can have in their company. It was a sad moment but Seth also feels that nagging guilt that had been weighing on him since spring disappear.

He pulled himself off the floor, grabbed his gear, and allowed himself moment to appreciate that his gut, his heart, and his head had all pointed in a single direction. The right direction. And that, that felt good. It was more evidence that he had evolved into a person he himself could trust.

Another chapter of his story had ended. The next was waiting to start back in Roman’s locker room where it was time to celebrate their future.

  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> This is the first fic I've written in three years and my first go at something in WWE so let me know what you think if you feel so inclined.


End file.
